The Budget  Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to speak to the budget today in this my maiden speech in the House of Commons. First, let me congratulate you on your new role in the Chair. I thank the people of Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon for putting their trust in me to represent them in Ottawa. O

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the member, a new member like myself, on his election to this place. The Conservative government has shown its support for health care in each budget that it has introduced since taking office. There have been 6% increases in Canada health and social

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, it was great to campaign with this in our platform because every community in my riding is served by volunteer firefighters. I know there has been broad support since we brought this measure forward. Having watched this House on CPAC on occasion when I was an observ

Vancouver Canucks  Mr. Speaker, my riding of Chilliwack--Fraser Canyon is a vast riding that encompasses a number of small communities, including the Fraser Canyon community of Boston Bar. Boston Bar is home to about 800 people and has its history rooted in the gold rush. The people of Boston Bar

Resumption and Continuation of Postal Services Legislation  Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister of Veterans Affairs for the good work he does for Canadian veterans. This debate is really about our constituents. I received a letter from one of my constituents named Anne, who stated: This whole situation has been an nightmare for our

Preventing Human Smugglers from Abusing Canada's Immigration System Act  Mr. Speaker, I can tell members opposite who supports the bill. It is average ordinary Canadians who have asked us to take action against human smuggling. The bill is about that. It is not about the overall refugee program, which, under the minister and this government, has accep

Preventing Human Smugglers from Abusing Canada's Immigration System Act  Mr. Speaker, during her presentation the member talked a lot about vulnerable persons. As we know, thousands of people die each year using human smuggling services, so anyone using human smuggling services is basically a vulnerable person. This legislation would not only increa

New Democratic Party of Canada  Mr. Speaker, the NDP claims it stands up for workers, but its actions tell a different story. While NDP MPs found time to support a few dozen radical activists protesting against the Keystone XL pipeline, not a single NDP MP bothered to show up to support Canada's building trade

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Kitchener—Conestoga, a member who has been a leading and indeed an award-winning advocate on the issue of suicide prevention. I also want to say to the member for Scarborough—Guildwood that it was an honour to be

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the parliamentary secretary for his service in this area as well. As we have heard throughout the day today, the suicide rate in aboriginal communities is disproportionately high. We need to take concrete steps to address that. We need to assis

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, as I have indicated, we have been there with funding in the amount of $65 million between 2005 and 2010 and $75 million going forward. As I also indicated, the issues of a first nations community in my riding of Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon are different from the Minist

Royal Canadian Navy  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to salute commanding officer Jamie Tennant and the entire ship's company of the HMCS Montreal, the Halifax class frigate that has just returned from its Great Lakes deployment. This annual event provides Canadians an opportunity to tour a navy vessel an

Taxation  Mr. Speaker, the NDP interim leader thinks anyone who has a tax-free savings account is wealthy, but 6.7 million Canadians have tax-free savings accounts. That is a lot of NDP taxation targets. The NDP thinks anyone who plans for their future and saves their own money is wealthy

Ending the Long-gun Registry Act  Mr. Speaker, I would like to echo the sentiments of my colleague, the member who kept the flame alive for a number of years when the previous government was forcing this on Canadians. I would like the member to differentiate for the opposition once again the difference between th

Fair Representation Act  Mr. Speaker, Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon is a beautiful riding of 30,000 square kilometres. About 120,000 people live there. I want to thank the member from British Columbia for her excellent speech where she laid out the formula we have undertaken in this bill, with six new seats